Saturday, October 10, 2009

Researchers Claim Jim Morrison's Ghost Picture Is Not A Fake

It is a story which fans of the Doors know only too well. Travelling American rock historian Brett Meisner decided, one day in 1997, to stop by his grave at the Père Lachaise cemetery in Paris to pay respects to his hero. As he did so, he asked his assistant to take a souvenir photograph. Almost as soon as it as taken, the picture was forgotten. But five years later, they found it...and noticed something that would shock the world: A chilling image in the background of, what appeared to be, the dead singer himself. Crowds of people had been there at the same time - up to 1,000 still visit the singer's grave daily - but nobody else recorded the strange image. Word quickly spread across the internet. The Morrison ghost photograph became notorious and, keen to know what had happened, Meisner agreed that both the picture and negative should be sent for extensive analysis.

But, according to a new book, Ghosts Caught on Film 2: Photographs of the Unexplained researchers have, to this day, been unable to explain the picture. A trick of the light has, apparently, been ruled out while image manipulation - the most likely explanation - also appears 'unlikely'. In fact, the book goes even further, and concludes the image is simply unexplainable. Whatever the truth, Meisner's life was never the same after the picture was taken. His marriage broken down and he lost a close friend to a drug overdose - the same thing that killed the Doors legendary frontman. For his part, Meisner is philosophical: "Part of me wishes that I would have never stepped foot into the graveyard in the first place,” says Meisner. “While I also know I’m partly to blame for talking about it in the first place. I should have kept it to myself. “I’ve had strangers come to my home at all hours of the night wanting to talk to me saying they had messages from Jim. “At first it was sort of interesting to see how many people felt a spiritual bond with Jim and the photo, but now the whole vibe seems negative.”